Religion

Pew studies and analyzes issues at the intersection of religion and public affairs by conducting surveys, demographic analyses, and other research about the practice of religion and its place in American life. Recent work includes a major portrait of Jews in America and interviews with 38,000 Muslims around the globe to provide a more complete understanding of the beliefs and political views of members of the world’s second- largest religion.

Seven ordained ministers hold seats in the new Congress – one more than the number in the very first U.S. Congress (1789-1791).1 But because Congress was a much smaller body in the late 18th century than it is now – there were 91 members in the first Congress, compared with 535 voting members today – […] Read More

More than nine-in-ten members of the newly elected 114th Congress are Christian -- a significantly higher share than is seen in the general population. However, many other major religious groups are represented in the body, including Jews, Buddhists, Muslims, Hindus and the unaffiliated. Read More

Pope Francis, leader of the world’s nearly 1.1 billion Catholics, enjoys broad support across much of the world: a median of 60% across 43 nations have a favorable view of him. Only 11% see the pope unfavorably, and 28% give no rating. Read More

Latin America is home to more than 425 million Catholics – nearly 40% of the world’s total Catholic population – and the Roman Catholic Church now has a Latin American pope for the first time in its history. Yet identification with Catholicism has declined throughout the region, according to a major new Pew Research Center […] Read More

One-in-five Americans report sharing their religious faith on social networks like Facebook and Twitter in an average week, about the same percentage that tune in to religious talk radio, watch religious TV programs or listen to Christian rock music. Read More

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